University of Nebraska - Lincoln DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln Textile Society of America Symposium Proceedings Textile Society of America 9-2012 Thomas Jefferson’s Blue Coat: Style, Substance and Circumstance Joshua Bond Costume Technology, The College of Charleston, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/tsaconf Bond, Joshua, "Thomas Jefferson’s Blue Coat: Style, Substance and Circumstance" (2012). Textile Society of America Symposium Proceedings. 661. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/tsaconf/661 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Textile Society of America at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in Textile Society of America Symposium Proceedings by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. Thomas Jefferson’s Blue Coat: Style, Substance and Circumstance Joshua Bond [email protected] Some Examples of Jefferson’s Attitude to Wardrobe and Image Reflection in Portraiture Jefferson was one of the architects of a new republic, ideally this would be a true egalitarian republic in every sense with no echoes of the aristocratic and monarchistic old world from which independence had been won. Proud of his role in creating and nurturing this republic, when Jefferson officially “sat” for portraits, it is clear that he chose clothing that reflected a man of the people rather than a man over the people. For example, for a man acutely aware of image, the inclusion of classical elements in the background such as Roman columns in the well-known portrait by Gilbert Stuart (circa 1805-7) reflect a typical popular style of contemporary portraiture for European aristocracy. Yet Jefferson is dressed in plain attire in complete contrast to the implied grandiosity of the background. Contemporary Reports Even under circumstances when etiquette pressure and fashion might have encouraged the adoption of grander attire, Jefferson stayed true to his egalitarian “man of the people” image. A prime example of this is his documented 1788 attendance at the court of Louis XVI at Versailles, representing the entire nation as the United States Minister to France. As discussed by Baumgarten, a contemporary report is one of the first to note his plain republican attire that became a signature element of his public image. Specifically, Thomas Lee Shippen who was present at Versailles wrote to William Shippen that Jefferson was, “The plainest man in the room, and the most destitute of ribbons crosses and other insignia of rank.” Yet he was, “The most courted and most attended to (even by the courtiers themselves) of the whole diplomatic corps.” 1 In His Own Words His broader attitude to attire and the creating of image can be seen in an incredibly detailed 1783 letter to his eleven year old daughter Martha in which he lectures her on the importance of always being appropriately dressed and presented, i.e., that first impression inevitably becomes lasting impression. He wrote, “But be you from the moment you rise to the moment till you go to bed as cleanly and properly dressed as at the hours of dinner or tea. A lady who is seen as a sloven or slut in the morning, will never efface the impression she made with all the dress and pageantry she can afterwards involve herself in.” 2 1 Linda Baumgarten, "Homespun and Silk," in What Clothes Reveal: The Language of Clothing in Colonial and Federal 2 Linda R. Baumgarten, "Jefferson's Clothing," The Magazine Antiques, July 1993, pg. #100. Examination and Analysis of Blue Coat in Monticello Collection Description of the Coat The subject coat is a blue frock coat that is made of one over one plain weave tabby cloth. It includes style elements from different time periods – see below, making dating a non-trivial task. Moreover, such a hodge-podge of styles is consistent with a coat intended for practical use by Jefferson, the private individual, rather than Jefferson the republic patriarch posing for posterity. In short an emphasis on function rather than form. The coat is partially lined. Some buttons have been replaced. All the buttonholes are functional and the buttons now follow a curve indicating Jefferson wore this coat buttoned. The coat is stable in good overall condition, with only a few isolated signs of wear, abrasion, and/or insect damage. Textile Composition of the Coat The coat for some time has been reported to be indigo-dyed linen and at a first glance the coat gives the appearance of such, which was certainly a readily available and commonly used material during the early American Republic. When the author examined the coat along with the staff members from both Monticello and Colonial Williamsburg it was agreed that the fiber of the coat’s fabric was questionable and warranted further study. When carefully viewed through a microscope even at low magnification the fabric can clearly be seen to consist of a blend of light and dark fibers. At higher resolution the color difference in these fibers is even more apparent. According to experts in historical weaving, these different color saturations indicate fibers that bonded with the dye to different degrees and/or fibers that have lost color intensity by fading at distinctly different rates. Either way, the inescapable conclusion is that two different fiber types are incorporated in the in the textile. What are the two fibers? By microscopic examination of the yarn ends in abraded edges of the cloth we can see both the scaly structure of wool fiber and the twisting ribbon appearance of cotton fiber. The cotton fibers are darker blue than those of the wool. While fabrics of different fibers blend in the yarn, as a opposed to those that use different yarns in the weaving, are relatively uncommon in the 18th and early19th centuries, they were not unknown. This wool/cotton conclusion is supported by several authors of the period who comment that cotton was commonly used to extend wool in the southern states, whereas linen was used for the same purpose in the northern states.3 According to Baumgarten, this was a natural consequence of the scarcity of sheep in this time in the new world, as England had jealously guarded its profitable flocks and banned the importation of good fleece bearing sheep to the early colonies.4 This was further exacerbated by the problems of sheep raising in southern climates that cause infestations and skin infections below thick wool. In fact there are records of such blending going back to at least 1711, as reported to the Board Of Trade in a report by Lieutenant Governor Alexander Spotswood of Virginia. 3 Baumgarten, What Clothes Reveal: The Language of Clothing in Colonial and Federal America : The Colonial Williamsburg Collection, 96. 4 Baumgarten, What Clothes Reveal: The Language of Clothing in Colonial and Federal America : The Colonial Williamsburg Collection, 96. 2 Dating of the Coat This garment presents the costume historian with conflicting indications as to the exact period when it was made. Specifically, the high collar and the narrowness of the back in relationship to the placement of the sleeves would be expected to be found in a coat constructed in the 1790’s. But the soft angle and the looseness of the sleeve definitely are indicative of a later period garment. Also, the straightness of the coat front is more commonly found on outer garments such as great coats before the 1820’s when it also gained wider usage on dress garments such as this frock coat. The author has studied and discussed cut of the coat with Colonial Williamsburg’s senior Tailor and costume historian Mark Hutter. In our opinion, the best dating evidence for this coat are the shape of the armscyes, the shape of the neck for collar attachment, and the sleeve shape. These features change distinctly according to the prevailing fashion in posture, silhouette and cut. As late as the 1790’s, standard practice had been to point an oval shaped armscye towards the apex of the wearer. But this coat has a rotated rounded armscye, giving a looser fit. This design feature started appearing in coats circa 1815. In fact if we look at the details of the armscye and these other features in a pattern lifted from the subject coat by Jeff Hill, we see they are virtually identical to these same details in a reference frock coat pattern presented in The Taylors Complete Guide, 1809, Phil. By Queen and Lapsley.5 Repairs and Alterations to the Coat The main repairs are to both the elbows of both sleeves using a different material than the body of the coat. These are clearly to repair wear holes indicating that this coat was heavily used over a period of time. The thread used to make these repairs is likely linen thread. The dye used to color this thread must have had a heavy iron component as revealed by what appears to be ferric (rust) oxidation of the thread. Originally, the coat had pockets in the pleats as revealed by several details. For example, the now closed button flaps in the pleats show evidence of wear and use. Also, a small square of fabric on the lower body of the coat is a leftover component that would have supported the body of the pocket bag. There is also a hook and eye fastening on the center of the rear vent; perhaps this was used to prevent the vent from gaping when the pockets were full of contents. The removal of the rear pockets and creation of the front pockets represent the only noticeable alteration to this garment. Very interestingly the thread used to attach the new pocket bags to the body of the coat has exactly the same appearance as the thread used in the elbow repairs.